Heel securement



Aug. 11, 1936. A 1 BQ'OK ET AL 2,050,644

HEEL SECUREMENT Filed Feb. 18, 1935 F1 E.' l-

"All' I wom/tow A-\ BI] AND J. E J IJHNSUN7 Patented Aug. 11, 1936 PATET QFFECE.

HEEL SECUREMENT .Andrew J. Book, Buena Vista, Ohio, and Jean Price Johnson, Maysville, Ky.

AApplication February 18, 1935, SerialNo. 7,098

3 Claims.

This iinven'tionrelates tof'means for .securing heels-toshoes and'has for its'object toprovide :a constructionzsimplein parts, more efficient in usavand:lessco'stlyxtoxapply, than those heretofore proposed.

With these and other objectsin view the in- 'vention.:resides :in the-.novel details of construe- .tion :and 'combinations rof :parts more ,fully de- -;scribedhereinafter and: particularly pointed out l Yinithe claims.

Referring to the'accompanying drawingformingaa'ipartof this: specication and in which like numerals designate Alikeiparts in allithe views- Fig. 1v isfavertical sectional view through the l5 Aheelof a'.shoeiillustrating'the,application of this invention; and

',Fig. 2 `is anl enlarged .sectional view illustrating :a ymodiiicationI of lsome of the parts shown in Fig. 1.

In `order that this invention may be better vunderstood it is .said that .heretofore therehas fbeen experienced considerable difficulty, particu- .larly in-.the4 case of ladies :shoes and slippers, in .keeping-the heel firmly vsecured to the-shoe or 25 slipper 1-becausewof therelative great height of .the heel, causing Vconsiderable'leverage'strain to ,be placed upon thev'joint between thelheel and ltheY sole. Mechanical :means for'securing aheel .to .the :sole have been' proposed, but such ldevices 'have lbeenr so :constructed :as to vseriously interferevwith lthe -steps of :assembling the shoe at the factory, or else haveV made necessary asub- .stantial undoingfofwork alreadyrnished, there- .by adding considerably .to the cost of production. Therefore, the principal object of this present invention-is the provision of amechanical secure- ,ment which does not interfere with any of the ymanufacturingfstepsv andprocedure now used in shoe-factories, thereby keeping the cost down to 40 minimum, "while another important object Vis the adaptability of theprinciple of this securement to heels of varying height. n In the drawing'the upper portions of a shoe havefbeen omitted for clearness, the sole portion 45 of the shoe as shown comprising the insole I and the outsole 2. This sole combination is provided With an opening 3 extending completely therethrough just above where the heel 4 is lo.- cated, said opening being of circular or other 50 shape as desired, and over this opening is positioned a metallic plate 5 whose central portion has been punched to provide the countersink 6 extending into said opening. An important feature of this invention is that the bo-ss T, 55 created by punching said plate or otherwise forming the countersink 5, extends from the plane of the Ymain body portion of said plate a distance which is no greater' than a fraction of the thickness of the sole; i. e. the boss I will not protrude through the opening 3. 5

The heel 4 is provided with a bore I0 of a diameter to receive the relatively long screw I I, said bore having an enlarged portion I2 at the bottom of the heel to receive therein a lock Washer I3 of lead or other suitable metal preferably counterl0 sunk to ttingly receive the head I4 of said screw, the bore IZ being sufciently deep to completely contain said washer and said screw head thus permitting the top lift I5 to be applied and secured, as by the nail I6, in flush association with thesurface of said heel.

The bore Ill has a second portion of enlarged diameter inthe upper vportion of the heel y for receiving therein a short connector or sleeve lmember 2l internally threaded throughout for 20 receiving the end 'of the screw II, there being provided a definite shoulder 22 where the bores It and 20 meet. Thus it will be seen that, upon actuation of the screw Il, the sleeve may be drawn to seat rmly upon said shoulder. 25

A relatively short screw .25 is provided to be threaded into the upper portion of said sleeve, the head of said screw being suitably formed to have a slight rocking engagement with the countersunk portion of the plate 5, the depth of the latter being suiiicient to co-mpletely contain `t-he screw head. A thin fiber or leather sheet '26 is provided to cover the plate 5.

From the foregoing description it will thus be apparent that, during the manufacture of the shoe, the plate 5 together with the short screw 25 may be placed in the insole in the insole cutting room and retained temporarily in position by the protective cover sheet 26. After said plate and screw vare inserted the insole is nailed to 40 last and goes through the lasting machine, sole laying, levelling, welt machine, trimming machine, and then to the heeling department of the factory, the screw 25 being so short that it will not protrude through the combined sole structure a sufficient distance to interfere with these shoe treating and/or assembling operations.

The wood heeler then connects the sleeve 2| to the short screw 25, applies glue over the top 0 of and into the large bore 20 of the heel,rand then places the heel on the heel seat forcing said sleeve into said bore. The outer surface of said sleeve is preferably roughened or provided with indentations 21 into which the glue will key, 55

thereby preventing any possibility of the heel turning after the glue has hardened.

'Ihe shoe is then placed in a suitable machine by which necessary pressure is applied to make the heel and heel seat inseparably glued, then the lock washer I3 is inserted in the enlarged bore I2 at the bottom of the heel and the long screw II inserted through this washer and threaded into the sleeve while the pressure is still retained.

In this operation the screw II is turned to bring the sleeve tightly against the shoulder 22, and then the short screw 25 is turned tightly into the opposite end of said sleeve, the protective cover 26 having been previously lifted or moved out of the way to permit actuation of the short screw. After this operation the shoe is then removed from the pressure machine since the heel is permanently fastened thereto, the protective cover 26 is permanently secured over the plate, and the shoe is then sent for attachment of the top lift I 5 after which the shoe is ready for the packing room.

Both screws are preferably pointed to facilitate positive entry into the ends of the connector or sleeve 2I, and the short screw 25 has a relatively floating, loose, or universal t in the countersink of the plate 5 to permit the heeler to slide the heel in any direction to obtain a perfect t upon the sole. The lock Washer prevents the screw I I from loosening and also takes the strain orf of the wood heel while said screw is being tightened. In no case is the length of the sleeve 2I suilicient to extend from the shoulder 22 to the edge of the boss 7 created by the counter-sinking of plate 5, thereby insuring a gap or space to permit the fullest possible and necessary pressure to be applied through the screws I I and 25 for securing the heel to the shoe.

The yieldable fit of the head of the screw 25 in the countersink S permits adjustment of the entire screw assembly in accordance with the angle formed between the axis of the bore IE) and the plane of the plate 5. Further, this principle of securement is applicable to heels of different height, the only change necessary being in the length of the longer screw employed, the sleeve 2l being of suiicient length to permit small variations in the over-all length of the screw assembly.

By making the lock washer of non-rusting soft metal, a substantially moisture-proof seat is provided for the head of the larger screw H, thus insulating the wood fibers of the heel from disastrous rust erosion and maintaining the strength of the fibers where pressure of the screwhead is desired retained. This is considered important since the joint between the top lift I5 and the heel 4 is but a small fraction of an inch above the ground surface and therefore very apt to pass moisture to the bore I2 and said screwhead. If desired all of the above described metallic members could be of non-rustable or rust-resisting metal having the necessary strength to withstand and/or support the pressures applied,

It is obvious that those skilled in the art may vary the details of construction and arrangements of parts Without departing from the spirit of the invention, and therefore it is desired not to be limited to the foregoing disclosure except as may be required by the claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A heel and sole securement for ladies shoes the same comprising a pair of tensioning members, one for disposal within the confines of the sole to permit working operations upon the sole during manufacture of the shoe, an element for connecting said members and holding them together under proper securing tension, and a bearing plate for the sole confining member, said plate adapted to be supported by the inner surface of the sole and having a recessed portion to accommodate the head of said sole conning member in positions adjustably in accordance with the inclination of the heel to the sole.

2. In a shoe the combination of a sole provided 1n the heel engaging portion with an opening extending therethrough; a plate disposed over said opening and having a countersunk portion extending into said opening; a heel provided with a bore extending from top to bottom thereof in substantial registry with the opening of said sole; a threaded member having a bearing in the lower portion of said heel and extending upwardly in said bore; a headed second threaded member, the head thereof held by the countersunk portion of said plate, the shank of said member having a'diameter less than the diameter of the opening in the sole to permit adjustability in the 3 seating of said member on said plate in accordance with the inclination of the heel to the sole, said member of a length to lie substantially within the connes of said sole; and a connector joining said threaded members.

3. In a shoe the combination of a sole provided in the heel engaging portion with an opening extending therethrough; a plate disposed over said opening and having a countersunk portion extending into said opening; a heel provided with a bore extending from top to bottom thereof, the opposite ends of said bore being enlarged, said bore in substantial registry with the opening of said sole; a threaded member having a bearing in the lower bore enlargement and extending into said bore; a headed second threaded member, the head thereof held by the countersunk portion of said plate, the shank of said member having a diameter less than the diameter of the opening in the sole to permit adjustability in the seating of said member on said plate in accordance with the inclination of the heel to the sole, said member of a length to lie substantially within the confines of said sole; and a connector joining said threaded members and secured to the surface of and disposed in the upper bore enlargement.

ANDREW J. BOOK. JEAN PRICE JOHNSON 

